The plants in your garden are more powerful than you might think! Your garden plants can offer beauty and nourishment in more ways than how they look and taste. Rather than spending a fortune on products loaded with synthetic ingredients, why not find out how you can use various plants in your garden to create a fresh, organic skin care routine?
Edible Plant-Based Skin Care
Say goodbye to that $150 strawberry exfoliant skin cream from Sephora and DIY your own edible plant-based skin care products right at home! If you have dry, sensitive, or oily, acne-prone skin, a naturally sourced strawberry mask or berry scrub will greatly benefit your skin. Strawberries are full of alpha-hydroxy acids, which work to gently sweep away dead skin cells. Furthermore, all that extra vitamin C helps lighten existing dark spots and other skin discolorations.
Herb-Infused Soap
Creating your own herb-infused soap is much easier than you think! This is a delicious way to create gorgeous gift-worthy soap and achieve gorgeous-looking skin, all with the help of your plants. Popular herb-infused soap combinations include rosemary, basil, lemon thyme, and lavender, but it’s really up to you about what plants you want to include! If you’re new to homemade soaps, start with a soap-making kit that contains all the basic equipment and ingredients to produce basic bars, and add your own fresh ingredients to customize each batch.
Mint Eye Cream
Mint eye cream is an up-and-coming trend in the plant-based skin care world, and for a good reason. It’s fool-proof to make and adds a cooling shot of hydration to your undereye area within seconds of application. Blend a handful of mint leaves with a few slices of cucumber and add 1-2 tablespoons of aloe vera gel and almond oil to form a paste. Pat the mixture on before bed to smooth and hydrate while you sleep.
Aloe Vera Plant Face Mask
If you’re like many gardeners in Fort Lauderdale, you likely have a big old aloe vera plant hanging around somewhere in your yard. Put it to good use with some organic skin care ideas! While most of us are familiar with the old “aloe vera after-sun gel” trick, aloe also makes a refreshing face mask when mixed with naturally antibacterial tea-tree oil. All you’ll need to do is extract two teaspoons of the aloe vera gel from your plant and combine it with five to seven drops of tea tree oil. Mix and apply to your face and let sit for just over ten minutes before rinsing.
Sunflower and Moringa Skin Oil
Sunflowers are filled with vitamin E oil, which makes them one of the most popular flowers used in skin care. Sunflower seed oil combines vitamin E and fatty acids to act as a barrier against wrinkles and strong sun rays, while its anti-inflammatory properties fight acne and rashes. To extract sunflower oil, blend whole seeds with a splash of water until you end up with a paste. Place the paste in a fine sieve and place over a small bowl and let stand for 24 hours, pressing the mixture occasionally to squeeze out the oil. Roasting the seed paste for 20 minutes at 300ºF may help the oil separate faster. Infuse some seed oil with moringa leaves, and you have an awesome skin care oil extracted straight from your plants.
Avocado Moisturizer
This organic skin care routine is as raw and plant-based as it gets. It’s as simple as taking the contents of the fruit and smearing them onto your skin, then washing it off fifteen minutes later. Avocado plants are filled with natural oils that moisturize your skin. You can prevent blemishes, acne, and wrinkles by keeping your skin well-hydrated! If you’re lucky enough to have an avocado tree in your backyard, this is a must-try!
Let your garden plants share their beauty with you using these fun plant-based skin care ideas. With a little research, you might be fascinated by just how many plants in your landscape have benefits for your skin! Visit us at Living Color Garden Center in Fort Lauderdale for more tips and tricks for using your favorite plants.